Communication networks are well known in the art. Multiple nodes may be incorporated into a common communication system for the purposes of exchanging data of various kinds. Such networks may exist for myriad purposes and incorporate anywhere from two nodes to thousands or millions of nodes. While many such networks are relatively static in location and composition, networks may be increasingly physically mobile and may be rapidly variable in composition. Thus, while many conventionally wired networks do not pose substantial challenges in maintaining the integrity of the network, even when nodes move about and enter and leave the network, managing mobile networks may create relatively greater challenges in supporting the network.
Even among mobile networks, however, the challenges of network maintenance may be comparatively straight forward. Commonly available local wireless transmitters which facilitate direct communications between two nodes in a network exist which transmit to ranges of kilometers or tens of kilometers. Over land-based networks, such ranges may mean that, in many cases, nodes moving even at relatively high land speeds may only infrequently enter and leave the operational range of other nodes. In such cases, the network support structures may be able to manage the evolving nature of the network, as in such cases the network does not evolve extremely quickly.
By contrast, local airborne networks may evolve very quickly. A transmitter on an aircraft moving from many hundreds of kilometers per hour up to thousands of kilometers per hour may enter and then leave the effective range of the transmitter of another node in a matter of seconds. Largely unconstrained by geography, airborne nodes may be subject to rapid changes in direction and may take courses in opposition to one another, additively combining the nodes' relative speeds to even further lessen the time the nodes may be in local communication with one another.
In certain applications such as military networks, steps which may be taken to mitigate such factors may be undesirable or impractical to implement. While transmitters for direct communication between nodes with ranges of hundreds or even thousands of kilometers may be utilized, such transmitters may also be detectable at ranges far greater than their effective range. This characteristic may make the network detectable by an opposing force at extremely long ranges, giving the opposing force information as to the nature of the network and allowing for the possibility of interference or compromise of the network. Similarly, satellite communications may be subject to compromise, disruption or outright disablement owing to the extreme ranges involved and the potential vulnerability of the satellite to attack.
Currently, the standard networking protocols, such as Border Gateway Protocol (BGP), enable autonomous network domains to be interconnected into a global Internet Protocol-based internetwork. The Internet is commonly known as the networked communication system interconnecting various sub-networks throughout the world. Various users of the term “Internet” may utilize the term interchangeably or in substitution for other terms such as “internet” and “World Wide Web”. It is to be recognized and understood, however, that the Internet may refer to other internetworking systems and protocols for linking nodes, either public or private, existing or yet to be developed. The Internet Protocol is a standard protocol for over the Internet. However, such standard networking protocols commonly incorporate static peering mechanisms which are designed for interconnecting stationary network domains, as well as route repair mechanisms which are commonly designed for the Internet, i.e., an environment which experiences relatively infrequent topology changes. In a mobile environment, and particularly an airborne environment, this peering mechanism may tend to break down, resulting in protocols such as BGP being challenged to maintain connectivity between and among the nodes of the network.